Mississippi
Way too early Dandy Dozen: Mississippi’s top college football recruits for class of 2025
As the 2023 high school football season is wrapped up and the early signing period is here, we take a look at an early projection of Mississippi’s Dandy Dozen list featuring the best college football prospects in the Class of 2025. Players are listed in alphabetical order.
This is not the official 2024 Dandy Dozen football list.
Caleb Cunningham
Choctaw County | Wide receiver
The five-star recruit, and No. 1 recruit in Mississippi and No. 2 wide receiver in the country according to the 247Sports Composite, has offers from a surplus of Power 5 schools including Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Oregon. This season, the 6-foot-3 wideout broke Choctaw’s yards and receptions record with 1,138 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns on 48 receptions.
Akylin Dear
Quitman | Running back
The 6-1 senior and four-star running back is the No. 4 recruit in the state. Dear has offers from many Division I programs including Alabama, Florida State, Mississippi State and Ole Miss. Dear has elite speed and power at the line and quickly finds gaps in defenses. Once he shreds tackles and is in open space, it’s a difficult task to catch him.
Jarcoby Hopson Jr.
Lake Cormorant | Safety
Hopson, a strong safety who rotates between linebacker, is the No. 5 recruit in the state. He is explosive, quick, and can read offense plays like second nature. The 6-1, four-star recruit has offers from many Division I schools including LSU, Florida State Ole Miss and Mississippi State.
Deuce Knight
George County | Quarterback
Knight, a Notre Dame commitment, is the highest-rated quarterback in Mississippi’s 2025 class and threw for 1,420 yards on 84 completions for 15 touchdowns this season. The 6-4 junior is the No. 2 recruit in the state and No. 54 overall prospect. Knight has elite vision downfield and can read defenses at a high level with a powerful arm to make snap throws to receivers.
MUST READ: Meet The Clarion-Ledger’s Large School All-State high school football team for 2023
Anson Lewis
Columbia | Wide receiver
Lewis is a four-star wideout and No. 12 recruit in the state. Lewis has offers from multiple Division I programs, including Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Missouri. Lewis’ elite hands and speed makes him unguardable at times.
Tyler Lockhart
Winona | Linebacker
Lockhart, a 6-3, four-star linebacker and No. 9 recruit in the state, has offers from Mississippi State and Georgie Tech. Lockhart helped Winona to its first MHSAA 3A state title and produced 100 tackles with 11 sacks. Lockhart has great awareness and leadership, commanding the defense.
Andrew Maddox
Oak Grove | Defensive Line
Maddox, the No. 3 recruit and 6-3, 265-pound defensive lineman, helped lead Oak Grove’s defense to the MHSAA 7A state title win with 99 tackles, 12 tackes for loss and two sacks. Maddox is a four-star defensive lineman with interest and offers from many Division I programs, including Georgia, Alabama, Florida State, Mississippi State and Ole Miss, where his older brother AJ has signed.
Tyler Miller
Laurel | Offensive Line
Miller, the 6-7, 340-pound offensive lineman and No. 8 recruit in the state, has offers from multiple Power 5 schools including Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Tennessee. His power and explosive are what have caught many recruiters’ eyes.
Mario Nash Jr.
Kemper County | Offensive Line
Nash, a three-star recruit, has offers from multiple Division I schools including Ole Miss, Florida State and Miami. Nash helped Kemper County to a 9-3 record this season. The 6-5 lineman is the No. 13 recruit in the state.
Kevin Oatis
Hattiesburg | Defensive line
Oats, a four-star recruit and No. 6 recruit in the state, has warm interest from many Power 5 Division I programs, including Alabama, Texas, Michigan, Ole Miss and Mississippi State. The 6-2 junior can push offensive linemen into the backfield with ease and pressure the quarterback within seconds.
MUST READ: Pearl football hires Neshoba Central coach Patrick Schoolar
KaMario Taylor
Noxubee County | Quarterback
Taylor is the No. 11 recruit in the state and helped lead Noxubbe County to the MHSAA 3A state title game. The Mississippi State commit threw for 3,282 yards on 186 completions with 45 touchdowns. The 6-5 quarterback also rushed for 789 yards on 82 rushes for 15 touchdowns. Taylor uses his high-octane speed and elite decision-making in any area he chooses, whether it’s to run or throw.
Cortez Thomas
Holmes County Central | Defensive back
Thomas, who is the No. 7 recruit in the state, has visited both Mississippi State and Ole Miss. Thomas helped Holmes to a 12-1 record by producing 45 tackles and two interceptions. He has great vision and speed to keep pace with any receiver he lines up against.
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion-Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.
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Mississippi
Mississippi St. demolishes E. Kentucky starting Lebby era with a 56-7 win
![Mississippi St. demolishes E. Kentucky starting Lebby era with a 56-7 win Mississippi St. demolishes E. Kentucky starting Lebby era with a 56-7 win](https://gray-wtok-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/VYCPKDPAFNCQ7MPKI6MN6UNQPQ.jpg?auth=a9e701ad9d9fa6c59471fe95f662d6ce2c957c85d07602764abf0256bf71c407&width=1200&height=600&smart=true)
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — From the moment Jeff Lebby arrived in Starkville, the first-time head coach has preached that a show is coming to Mississippi State.
The Bulldogs certainly put on a show for game one of his tenure, as MSU had 450 yards of total offense and ran away with a 56-7 victory on Saturday against Eastern Kentucky. It gave the coach his first career win and kicked off a new era of football.
“One of the coolest things for myself and my family, the fans showed out. Over 10,000 students showed up and hung with us through the rain. They did an unbelievable job creating the energy,” he said.
All three phases scored for the Bulldogs with touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams.
On offense, quarterback Blake Shapen debuted the new scheme with a 15 of 20 showing as the Baylor transfer found the end zone three times through the air and had 247 yards. On the ground, Shapen led the team with seven carries for 44 yards and a rushing score.
“I felt like it was a good day for us,” Shapen said. “There are obviously some things we can clean up and get better at, but overall it was a great start to the season. I’m just thankful for this opportunity at a new place and I know a lot of guys feel that way.”
The Bulldogs (1-0) had four wide receivers score touchdowns as Jordan Mosely had five catches for 104 yards and a touchdown and Kevin Coleman had five catches for 88 yards and a score. Coleman also had five punt returns for 117 yards.
MSU scored touchdowns on its first two possessions before a rain storm dampened the progress. The Bulldogs were back in the end zone in the second quarter on a Creed Whittemore 41-yard end around and then back-to-back touchdown passes to Coleman from 23 yards away and freshman Mario Craver for 54 yards.
Special teams got in on the mix with a blocked punt from JP Purvis — recovered by Craver — and another true freshman in defensive back Elijah Cannon who had a 51-yard pick-6.
“It’s fun to see those guys go out there and make some plays. It’s a players’ game, players have got to make the plays,” Lebby said. “Fun for our sideline, fun for our guys to be able to see them make plays late in the game like this.”
EKU (0-1) scored a touchdown in the final seconds of the first half but was held scoreless in the final two frames. The Bulldogs allowed 130 second half yards. Despite running 19 more plays than State (76-57) the Colonels were outgained 450-285 with the Bulldogs averaging 7.9 yards per play.
“There are plenty of things that we have to clean up. We’ve got to play better, we’ve got to play cleaner,” Lebby said. “So much good, but so much to clean up. That was the message in the locker room.”
BIG PICTURE
EKU: The Colonels were simply overmatched, but the Colonels have a manageable schedule coming down the line.
Mississippi State: The Bulldogs have been searching for excitement and the team has it – at least for game one. State picked up nearly 500 yards of offense and showed explosiveness on that side of the ball as Lebby’s offense did its thing. There is a rough schedule on the horizon, but it appeared fun again for the Bulldogs.
UP NEXT
Eastern Kentucky travels to Western Kentucky on Sept. 7.
Mississippi State travels to Arizona State on Sept. 7.
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Mississippi
Seven Killed, Dozens Injured When Bus Flips in Mississippi
![Seven Killed, Dozens Injured When Bus Flips in Mississippi Seven Killed, Dozens Injured When Bus Flips in Mississippi](https://img2-azrcdn.newser.com/image/1556537-12-20240831141902.jpeg)
A commercial passenger bus driving through Mississippi on its way to Mexico ran off a highway and overturned early Saturday, killing seven people and injuring dozens. The accident occurred on Interstate 20 east of Vicksburg, CNN reports. A total of 37 people were taken to hospitals in Vicksburg and Jackson, the Mississippi Highway Patrol said. A 6-year-old boy and his 16-year-old sister were among those killed, per the AP. “Anytime you have people injured or killed, it’s tragic, but when you have a situation like this where you have multiple fatalities and multiple injuries, it makes it even worse,” said Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace.
The bus, a 2018 Volvo, is owned by Autobuses Regiomontanos, which transports passengers between Mexico and the US, a company spokesperson said. The company is based in Monterrey, Mexico, Miranda Fernandez said. Its website lists several US locations; it’s not clear where the trip had originated. “All of the passengers go through proper immigration checkpoints and must show their passports or visas to enter either Mexico or the United States,” Fernandez told CNN. (More bus accident stories.)
Mississippi
What channel is Mississippi State football vs EKU on today? Time, TV schedule for Week 1 game
![What channel is Mississippi State football vs EKU on today? Time, TV schedule for Week 1 game What channel is Mississippi State football vs EKU on today? Time, TV schedule for Week 1 game](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2024/04/20/PNAS/73399215007-1350-acs-fbc-cl-msu-spring-game.jpg?auto=webp&crop=1151,649,x0,y107&format=pjpg&width=1200)
Mississippi State football opens the 2024 season with FCS opponent Eastern Kentucky on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium.
The Bulldogs open Year 1 of the Jeff Lebby era with a lot of unknowns. Saturday’s game will be a good chance to find some answers.
Mississippi State QB Blake Shapen will make his first start in maroon and may have a big season in Lebby’s offense.
Here’s how to watch the Mississippi State football vs. Eastern Kentucky game today, including time, TV schedule and streaming information:
Mississippi State vs. EKU will broadcast nationally via streaming on SEC Network+ and ESPN+ in Week 1 of the 2024 college football season. Kevin Fitzgerald and Charlie Strong will call the game from the booth at Davis Wade Stadium. Streaming options for the game include ESPN+, ESPN’s subscription streaming service.
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 31
- Start time: 5 p.m. CT
The Mississippi State football vs. Eastern Kentucky game starts at 5 p.m. CT Saturday from Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi.
Clarion Ledger reporter Sam Sklar’s prediction: Mississippi State 50, Eastern Kentucky 10
Saturday will be a celebration of sorts for Lebby’s first game. The Bulldogs will come out hungry with something to prove on offense after last season. MSU will grab a big lead early and Blake Shapen won’t need to play a single snap in the fourth quarter.
Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Thursday, Aug. 29
- Odds: N/A
- O/U: N/A
- Money line: N/A
- Aug. 31: EKU, 5 p.m. on ESPN+ and SEC Network+
- Sept. 7: at Arizona State, 9:30 p.m. on ESPN
- Sept. 14: Toledo, 6:30 p.m. on ESPN2 or ESPNU
- Sept. 21: Florida, 11 a.m. on ABC or ESPN
- Sept. 28: at Texas, TBD
- Oct. 5: OPEN DATE
- Oct. 12: at Georgia, TBD
- Oct. 19: Texas A&M, TBD
- Oct. 26: Arkansas, TBD
- Nov. 2: UMass, 3:15 p.m. on SEC Network
- Nov. 9: at Tennessee, TBD
- Nov. 16: OPEN DATE
- Nov. 23: Missouri
- Nov. 29: at Ole Miss, 2:30 p.m. on ABC and ESPN+
- Dec. 7: SEC Championship Game in Atlanta, 4 p.m. on ABC
- Record: 0-0
- Aug. 31: Mississippi State, 5 p.m. on ESPN+ and SEC Network+
- Sept. 7: at Western Kentucky, 6 p.m. on ESPN+
- Sept. 14: West Georgia, 5 p.m. on ESPN+
- Sept. 21: Morehead State, 5 p.m. on ESPN+
- Sept. 28: Robert Morris, 1 p.m. on ESPN+
- Oct. 5: OPEN DATE
- Oct. 12: at Southern Utah, 3 p.m. on ESPN+
- Oct. 19: at Abilene Christian, 3 p.m. on ESPN+
- Oct. 26: Utah Tech, 2 p.m. on ESPN+
- Nov. 2: at Tarleton State, 6 p.m. on ESPN+
- Nov. 9: Central Arkansas, 1 p.m. on ESPN+
- Nov. 16: at Austin Peay, 1 p.m. on ESPN+
- Nov. 23: North Alabama, 1 p.m. on ESPN+
- Record: 0-0
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